When I consider the modern day mantra regarding relevance I think of the scene from the movie Hook. The lost boys sit down to eat and their bowls are filled with steam but have no food in them. They think they are filling their bellies with substance but they are living on fluff.
I find that in history the people who stand out the most are those who dared to be different in their own generation. Had they succombed to a modern idea of relevance we would not have many of the things we so enjoy today. Instead of carving out new ideas and birthing things in creative genius they would have been busy shopping for the latest trends in clothing, or shopping for the newest and hottest music.
Thanks be to God every generation has had a remnant who will salt their world with difference. Not difference for the sake of difference, but difference because they have discovered their purpose in life is not to imitate others, but rather to stand apart.
Modern Christianity's attempt at relevance is nothing more than a cheap imitation of the world. May God restore us to being the salt of the world, a city set on a hill, and a light to the nations.
To quote my lovely wife Sheila, "Every attempt at relevance always forfiets excellence"...
Who will dare to be different in a culture saturated with sameness?
About The Author
- Tim Atchley
- Knoxville, Tennessee, United States
- I currently serve as Senior Pastor of Harvest Church in Knoxville, Tn. I was sent out from Trinity Chapel of Knoxville in 1993 accompanied by my wife Sheila our four children Sarah, Hannah, Josiah & Isaac and a handful of bold, brave and committed believers determined to plant our first church. Pioneering is hard work but well worth the journey. That is why we desire to make disciples of Christ who will, like us, also embrace the call to plant churches.
